I have a lot of noise and vibration up front, as well as the front diff leaking at 4 different spots. I plan on replacing the front diff bearings and seals as well as cv axles and front hubs. This thing sat for over a year before I bought it.

My question is more about brand and part quality. Are there any brands that are better or worse. Price is not always a good indicator anymore.

My blazer is 2001 LT with 4WD.
Both boots are blown out and she vibrates now over 25 or 30 mph.. (grease everywhere.) When I first her running she was ok. ( replaced fuel pump). Had to drive he 8 hours to get it home but the closer I got to home the more things started to vibrate or make noise. / Rear brakes were gone by the time I got home.

 

Welcome to the forum. I've been using Timken bearings and seals for 30 years with no complaints. They're my only choice for hub assemblies. Fel Pro gaskets have served me just as well. When I replace my cv axles I'm spending more at oreillys to get a lifetime warranty and a short, local trip for a free replacement when those boots start leaking.

 

Good point on the warranty if it covers off road use. This will be my hunting and camping rig. I too like Timken bearings. We use the Timken wheel bearing on the F-15 fighter jet and they don't go bad often. When we do replace one it's more cosmetic than anything.

I guess I'll have to make a list and see what O'reilly's and Napa prices are. If online prices are close I may buy local.

When it comes to CV joints there are a lot of brands I'v never heard of before. Probably all made in the same shop as the other brand.

 

I've wondered the same about cv-axles/boots.

I had heard that NAPA was the way to go but then I realized they were just repackaging the Cardone ones but with a better warranty.

I had not heard of the lifetime warranty through O'Reilly's. I'll have to look into that.

What I can contribute is that while at my local shop having the front end aligned I was told to always go with new axles as the reconditioned ones can have had too much metal machined from the hardened surfaces and the axle shafts may be of inferior/unknown quality.

Christine

 

one problem with new axles is that the shaft diameters can be smaller than the originals because it costs less to make them that way , check visibly that they are of equal diameter or you may only think your getting a better part .....sometimes it may be worth having your original ones rebuilt .